"It's a very simple game. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. Sometimes it rains."
(Bull Durham)

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Rounds 4-10

The Bucs picked a handful of guys that are projectable players and a handful that they'll lasso in for minimum costs. Get used to it; the new CBA and its cap will make this kind of mixture inevitable, not only to offer fat bonuses to the top end but to leave the team some wiggle room on the back end, where you can shift unspent cap money to overdrafts. The Bucs are playing this first brave new world draft pretty much by the book. The rounds 4-10 selections are:

In the fourth round, the Bucs took speedy Georgia Tech OF Brandon Thomas. a 21 year old junior. The switch hitter batted .360 with a .481 OBP and 5 homers while showing great plate discipline. He played mostly left for Tech, but projects as a CF'er in the pros, with an average arm being his biggest drawback. Baseball America had him as their #89 player. (The slot price for the fourth round pick is $336,700.)

20 year old sophomore RHP Adrian Sampson was the Pirates fifth round pick. His slash was 11-0/1.36 ERA in 79-1/3 IP with 107 K at Bellevue CC in Washington, which he attended after having Tommy John surgery during his senior year of high school. He shows a plus curve, an erratic heater that's within a mile or two either way of 90MPH, and is developing a changeup. He was the 84th best prospect per Baseball America, and has made his college commitment to Oregon.(The slot price for the fifth round is $252,100.)

In the following round, the FO took unranked 3B/P Eric Wood, 19, of Blinn College, a Texas JC. The Canadian product hit .318/4/39 as a freshman; the Pirates intend to use him at the hot corner. Wood is the first player that didn't rank at or better than his draft slot. So the Bucs may be easing off the throttle here to save a buck or two, although Wood was drafted out of high school by the As. (The slot price for the sixth round is $188,800.)

C/1B Jacob Stallings, 23, a 6'5", 222 lb senior from North Carolina, was the seventh round choice. He built a .294/4/36 line for the Tarheels this year and has a rep as a good two-way catcher. Stallings was drafted in the 42nd round by the Reds in 2011 but didn't sign. It looks like a pretty good move on his part even though a senior doesn't have very much leverage in any draft.
(The slot price for the seventh round is
$148,000.)

The eighth round selection was prep SS Kevin Ross, 18, from Niles West HS, Illinois, the first middle infielder they drafted. Ross is a fair sized guy - 6'1", 195 lb - and projects to be a third baseman. His college commit is to Michigan. He was ranked 225th in Baseball America's top 500.(The slot price for the eighth round is $138,200.)

Pittsburgh took another SS in round nine, D.J. Crumlich from UC Irvine. He's a senior that the Bucs drafted last last season, so he bumped his stock up quite a bit. His rep is of a good glove guy, though probably not toolsy enough to hold the SS spot, and a punch-and-judy hitter that has a good eye and makes consistent contact. (The slot price for the ninth round is $129,100.)

The tenth round choice was RHP Patrick Ludwig, 22, from Yale, who will work as a reliever. He started for the Eli where he used an effective heater, curve and change. Ludwig wasn't ranked among the top 500 players. (The slot price for the tenth round is $125,000.)

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